The Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), a public health agency of the African Union (AU), addressed member states on Thursday, urging them to step up surveillance for monkeypox.
The agency had already provided these states with necessary advice, among others, surveillance, laboratory diagnosis, or the implementation of infection control measures, said the acting Director of the Africa CDC, Ahmed Ogwell, during a meeting. of a press briefing.
He recalled the importance of vaccines which offer very high protection once morest this disease, inviting the international community not to fall into the trap of “hoarding observed during Covid-19” and to favor “places where the risk is The highest”. According to him, Africa is already using monkeypox vaccines.
The acting director asked people to quickly consult a doctor as soon as the first symptoms appear, encouraging them “to wash their hands, to use the available disinfectants on a continuous basis, to avoid touching animals that seem sick” .
Many countries are already on alert for the disease, both in Africa and in other continents. Some countries are also preparing to vaccinate adults who have been in contact with an infected person.
According to the Africa CDC, four African countries have already reported this year a cumulative number of 1,405 endemic cases of monkeypox and 62 deaths, representing a case fatality rate of 4.4%.
At the beginning of this week, the WHO, through its official in charge of the fight once morest Covid-19 but also emerging diseases and zoonoses, Maria Van Kerkhove, declared that the situation “can be controlled” because “the main modes of transmission” of monkeypox are known.
The disease, generally benign, results in a fever and a rash. It is transmitted mainly through close skin-to-skin contact.
